At a glance

Your chance to

At a glance

Travel by bus and ferry

Optional daywalks and city walking tours

Group normally 6 to 20 plus local leader. Min. age 16 yrs.

11 nights hotels all en suite

All breakfasts included

On this trip we explore the highlights of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in under two weeks. The countryside, national parks and coastal areas of these countries are both varied and stunning, adding a touch of wilderness to the history, art, architecture and culture of the cities and towns that we visit as we journey from Tallinn to Vilnius. With street art, sculpture, incredible architecture and fascinating historical sites, this trip will undoubtedly satisfy your cultural hunger. However, the wild and open settings and picturesque landscapes will also feed your imagination.

Itinerary

Today we will explore the vibrant city of Tallinn, Estonia's capital and largest city. The Old Town, framed by old city walls, is full of architectural gems. In the morning we will have a guided tour of the city taking in some of the main attractions like the Toompea Palace and castle, the Alexander Nevsky cathedral, the Dome church and the St. Nicholas church. You will then have a free afternoon to explore the picturesque old town. Unlike most European cities Tallinn's old town is completely free from modern buildings. You can leave modern life behind as you explore the cobble stone alleys with spluttering torches and secret stairways; the old town holds new surprises around every corner, even for its old residents. Overnight in Tallinn’s old town.See more images and videos

3Day 3Explore the Lehamaa N.P., take a tour around Tartu City.

In the morning we will leave Tallinn and start the journey to Tartu stopping of at the Lahemaa national park. The Lahemaa national park is the largest in Estonia and is a popular tourist destination due to its untouched sandy beaches, waterfalls, cascades and mossy pine forests. The park offers a verity of cultural sights like Palmse manor and the 400 year old fisherman’s village of Altja. After lunch we transfer to Tartu for a guided tour. Tartu is Estonia’s second largest town and the capital of Southern Estonia. The town is rich with Estonian culture offering festivals, concerts and theatre exhibitions. We spend the night in a hotel in the centre of Tartu. See more images and videos

4Day 4Tour of Cesis and the Gauja N.P..

Cesis is an old town with a long history and is now known as a centre of art and culture. Situated on the Gauja River valley it's old town is one of the finest in Latvia. Its cobbled streets have retained a timeless appearance since the middle ages, the fine buildings have kept their red tiled roofs and restored their facades, making this a charming place to while away some time. The city is famed for its Medieval castle, a partly preserved fortification which has been knocked down and rebuilt in various forms. We will visit the castle and the museum in the morning and take a guided tour of the buildings. We transfer to the Gauja National Park where we will enjoy a guided walk of the park, here we will visit the Turaida castle and its adjoining sculpture gardens before making our way to Riga, the Latvian capital. There will also be the option to take the cable car (5 euros paid locally) across the Gauja river so we can then walk down to the Gutmanis caves. We will spend the night in a historic town house in Riga’s old town. See more images and videos

5Day 5Guided tour of Riga Old Town; free afternoon to explore at your own pace.

This morning the magnificent old town of Riga awaits. We will have a guided tour of the city to discover it's winding alleys, elegant boulevards and 800 renovated art nouveau buildings. You will then be free to soak up the charming and romantic atmosphere of the city and enjoy a relaxing lunch and exploring some of the town’s great shops. Overnight in Riga’s old town. See more images and videos

6Day 6Explore the seaside town of Jurmala.

In the morning we transfer from Riga to Jurmala; Jurmala is the largest seaside and spa resort in the Baltic States and is known for its unique natural resources such as its healing mineral waters, pine forests and sand dunes. The town is also famous for its unique wooden Art Nouveau architecture. After exploring the town we will transfer back to Riga for the night.See more images and videos

7Day 7Explore Rundale Palace, the Hill of Crossses and the port of Klaipeda.

Firstly we visit Rundale palace, the palace was designed for the Duke of Courland in the 18th century by Italian architect Rastrelli, who also designed the winter palace in St. Petersburg. Today the palace is the most magnificent piece of architecture in the Baltic States. We then cross the border to Lithuania and have some time to explore the famous Hill of Crosses before transferring to Klaipeda Port for a short tour around the small old town. The tour is a perfect chance to explore the old town with its reconstructed merchant houses and the magnificent ruins of Klaipeda Castle. We spend the night in the centre of Klaipeda, the hotel is a ten minute walk from the Castle and other attractions.

8Day 8Transfer by ferry to the Curonian Spit and explore the sand dunes.

We start the day with a ferry ride across the lagoon to the Curonian spit, here we have the day to explore the largest drifting sand dunes in Europe, the Curonian spit is a UNESCO world heritage site situated between the Curonian lagoon and the Baltic Sea. There will be a visit to the Hill of Witches and an excursion to the Lithuanian sea resort of Nida to climb the Great Dune for the spectacular views. We transfer back to Klaipeda where we spend the night.See more images and videos

9Day 9Visit the Plokstine Cold War Museum, City tour around Kaunas.

We transfer to the Plokstine forest and visit the Cold War Museum located in the former Soviet Union’s complex of ballistic missile launch. Today this secret base is open to the public, you can view the internal control facility and see former missiles as well as listen to expositions about the five decades of the Cold war, one of the most famous and dangerous military conflicts in human history. We then travel to the town of Kaunas, here we take a walking tour around the beautiful old town. The old town of Kaunas has a collection of important monuments like the 13th century castle, the old town hall, the cathedral Basilica and the church of St. Francis Xavier. We stay overnight in Kaunas.See more images and videos

10Day 10Visit the Pazaislis monastery and Trakai Castle.

The first stop is the Church and Monastery of Pazaislis to see one of the most wonderful Baroque architectural masterpieces in north-eastern Europe. The monastery is located on the picturesque bank of the Kaunas lagoon. We then stop in Trakai, the former capital of Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Here we will go for a tour around the amazing 14th century castle. Situated on a small island in the middle of the lake it is known as the town on the water. We then transfer to Vilnius were we stay the night.See more images and videos

11Day 11Guided tour of Vilnius; free time to explore.

Today we have the whole day to explore Vilnius. There is a guided tour of the city in the morning and then plenty of time to explore the city at your own pace. The city was developed around its Town Hall and there is a great deal of diverse architecture to explore. There are many narrow streets which lead to intimate courtyards, in addition to the larger landmarks of the castle complex, Cathedral square and the Royal Palace. There are also plenty of museums to while away some hours. Overnight in Vilnius. See more images and videos

Your images

Guided Group

This is a small group guided holiday. The group is usually between 4 and 16 in size, with an average of 12 like-minded clients booking individually, in a couple or as friends together.

Activity level

You are healthy, enjoy the outdoors and want a relaxing trip. No experience is required.

What's included

What's included

All breakfasts

All accommodation (see below)

All transport and listed activities

Tour leader throughout

Flights from London (if booking incl. flights)

What's not included

Travel insurance

Single accommodation (available on request for a supplement of GBP200)

Visas or vaccinations

Accommodation details

Hotels

There are some fantastic hotels on this trip. All are 3 or 4-star rated and ideally located for access to the key sights. A real highlight is the hotel in Kaunas where you have access to the pool and sauna.

Essential info

Vaccinations and Visa
British passport holders do not require a visa. Other nationalities should check with the relevant authorities.
There are no specific health risks. Holiday style

This is quite a busy itinerary based around sightseeing and exploring the Baltic States. There is a fair amount of walking around towns, cities and parks, these are all on good paths, mainly wooden boarded, so you will just need a pair of good trainers to be comfortable. One of the walks is on the sand dunes near Nida, there are board walks in place but you may find you get sand in your shoes. The walks are suitable for anyone with a reasonable fitness. In order to visit all the highlights of the countries there are some long bus journeys. The trip is graded: Moderate.

Eating & drinking

There will be buffet breakfasts in the hotels offering plenty of choice, including cold meats, cheese, eggs, bread, jams, juice and coffee.
Lunches will be a mixture of picnics bought from local shops and cafe stops.
Dinners will be taken in the hotels or in restaurants and will be hearty meals. Cuisine in this area is often centred around pork, veal, fish, potatoes, sauerkraut and soups such as borsch (beetroot soup with meat, in Lithuania this is also served cold). Dumplings are also very popular and in Trakai, large baked dumplings called kibinai are traditionally served and are very good.

Trip notes

Download the detailed trip notes for everything you could possibly want
to know about this trip, including detailed itinerary and full kit list.

Weather & seasonality

The climate is largely influenced by the Baltic Sea. The summers are warm with temperatures from 20-30degC. In the evenings the temperatures will not drop too much. There is little rain in the summer but of course it is always a possibility so it is best to be prepared. The days will be long, with 19 hours of daylight. In spring and autumn there is the possibility for light rain.

Estonia is furthest north and therefore the coldest, although the temperature range described applies. Lithuania is the furthest south, which makes it the warmest country of the three. Estonia is often described as the more Scandinavian country than the other two.

Gallery

Reviews & community

A gentle introduction to three countries - Cities, National Parks and coastal areas. From old historic centres to an abandoned Nuclear missile complex. A constantly interesting trip but never too serious or flippant. The evidence of former Soviet occupation is still there but the old towns were very well preserved or restored and the people were very welcoming and proud of their Traditions.

What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

Each country exceeded our expectations and despite their similarities in Geography, Politics and turbulent History were quite individual in character and culture. Tallinn's mix of medieval and modern was charming. Riga was lively - with winding streets and grand Art Nouveau Architecture, and Vilnius was a cosmopolitan, sophisticated, capital city - with Baroque Architecture and Parisienne style boulevards.

What did you think of your group leader?

Yolita ( or 'Yo' ) was excellent - very patient with the individual demands of the mixed group. Her language skills and local knowledge made the transition between the three countries easy for us. ( I noticed at the 'group' meals that she took care to sit with someone different each night.) On a personal note, Yolita gave my wife and I a personal tour of Vilnius on her day off as we had missed the group tour due to personal circumstances - what a star!

Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

We were unsure about the weather - but were lucky enough to have sunshine most of the time - except when we visited the underground missile complex - but that just added to the atmosphere.
As Vegetarians we were prepared for a limited diet - but the range and availability of Veggy food surprised us - with many local dishes and unexpected combinations. ( We even found an excellent Vegan Restaurant in Riga )
....... oh, and the local beer was great!

A very interesting holiday seeing the 3 Baltic states and learning about their history and seeing towns and countryside. We also sampled local cuisine.

What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

I think what the people have done to restore their countries since gaining their independence not so long ago is inspirational!

What did you think of your group leader?

Our group leader Vaida Jusaite was a lovely caring and informative leader who is passionate about the Baltic States and very knowledgeable. She made sure we experienced all that we could . She was also empathic to our needs.

Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

If you want to experience the Baltic States and learn about their history and culture this is the holiday for you!

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Vaida is a wonderful guide and we were sorry to leave her. Also there was an interesting mix of people in our group which was fun.

Three countries in twelve days gives you a taste of the culture and life across these Baltic States. The small changes as you move from one to the other are evident but also the sense of unity shared by these countries was evidwent.

What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

Seeing the pride in an elderly man I photographed at the Freedom Monument in Riga at the celebration of Restoration of Independence day, and the same emotion about Europe Day at the sound of the European Anthem expressed by our guide Lolita. That tune will always remind me of the trip.

What did you think of your group leader?

Lolita had a smile to greet us every day that never waned in our presence. Her knowledge and enthusiasm was outstanding. Her tolerance of our behaviour with a large group of varied people was commendable.

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